Vivir Arriba (Living Above) by Chucho Ocampo is an exercise in imagination which aims to provoke new ways of thinking and inhabiting Plaza de las Americas, Queretaro’s first large shopping center. The intention of Vivir Arriba is to imagine opportunities and possibilities for Plaza de las Américas, rethinking its program, adapting its architecture and its relationship with the street and the city in general. Although primarily utilized for warehouses and shopping malls, Chucho Ocampo believes the Plaza de las Americas has more to offer. Simple blueprint graphics of the plaza, both finished and unfinished, under and over developed, interjected with the occasional blank page, Vivir Arriba allows the reader to have space to engage with this artist book, co-creating a new future for Plaza de las Americas.

Gold Rain Books is the publishing imprint of Da Substanz, an artist-run space and gallery based in Querétaro, Mexico. Gold Rain Books works closely with artists to produce limited or spontaneous editions with local and national artists. This project is also supported by the Programa de Estimulo a la Creacion y Desarrollo Artistico (PECDA) and Derive Lab.